Guelph looks to increase transit fees for U of G riders

U of G bus fare increase

Mercury file photo

Crowds of University of Guelph students wait in front of the University Centre in this Sept. 11, 2007 file photo. A proposal is in place to raise Guelph Transit fees for U of G students by 4.3 per cent as of Sept. 1.

GUELPH — The City of Guelph is looking to raise the price of Guelph Transit passes for University of Guelph students this fall.

A city staff report going to the municipality’s Operations and Transit Committee Monday recommends increasing the fee for a U-Pass by 4.1 per cent, effective Sept. 1.

The report by Guelph Transit General Manager Michael Anders asserts that the proposed increase would be comparable to the 4.3 per cent general fare increase Guelph Transit will be putting into effect at the same time.

It would see the cost of the U-pass – an unlimited-use pass that all U of G students must purchase – rise from $86 for the present spring season to $89.50 for the fall season and hold at that rate for the winter season pass.

The proposed one-year arrangement could also be implemented without need for referendums on the increases by the university’s Central Student Association and its Graduate Students’ Association. According to the report, those organizations must put any U-Pass proposals that would see a fare increase in excess of five per cent to their member-students for approval via a vote.

“Although the parties to this agreement (Guelph Transit, the Central Student Association and the Graduate Students’ Association) prefer multi-year agreements, the time and resource limitations resulting from the implementation of the Transit Growth Strategy at the beginning for 2012 precluded (city) staff from negotiating one,” states Anders, in the report. “The parties’ recommended one-year agreement contains a reasonable price increase (less than five per cent) that does not require a referendum vote.”

Anders’ report asserted all other terms of the U-Pass agreement will remain in force from the present agreement if this proposal goes forward. It also states that negotiations on a new multi-year deal to come into force for the Spring 2013 season are to start this fall.

The U-Pass agreement has been in place for almost 20 years.

As of 2010, it provided about 40 per cent of the fare revenue received by Transit. Its users accounted for about 3.1 million rides annually or about half of the volume served by the organization.

The city report asserts that the proposed rate increase would allow for Transit to meet its 2012 budget goals set in relation to the U-Pass program.